Supernatural Lore of Pennsylvania: Ghosts, Monsters and Miracles

by Thomas White

Overview

Passed down over generations, Keystone State legends and lore provide both thrilling stories and dire warnings.

Strange creatures and tales of the supernatural thrive in Pennsylvania, from ghostly children who linger by their graves to werewolves that ambush nighttime travelers. Phantom trains chug down the now removed rails of the P&LE Railroad line on the Great Allegheny Passage. A wild ape boy is said to roam the Chester swamps, while the weeping Squonk wanders the hemlock-shrouded hills of central Pennsylvania, lamenting his hideousness. On dark nights, the ghosts of Betty Knox and her Union soldier beau still search for each other at Dunbar Creek. Join Thomas White and company as they go in search of the truth behind the legends of supernatural Pennsylvania.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781626194984
Publisher:	Arcadia Publishing SC
Publication date:	07/22/2014
Series:	American Legends
Pages:	160
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Thomas White is the university archivist and curator of special collections in the Gumberg Library at Duquesne University. He is also an adjunct lecturer in Duquesne's history department and an adjunct professor of history at La Roche College. White received a master's degree in public history from Duquesne University. He is the published author of eight books, all of which focus on Pennsylvania history.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements 9

Introduction: the Supernatural in Pennsylvania 11

PART 1 Ghosts

The Restless Dead 13

The Pig Lady of Cannelton Thomas White 15

The Ghost of Betty Knox Tony Lavorgne 25

Supernatural Cemetery Tales Robin Swope 29

She Watches from the Grave Candice Buchman 35

Slag Pile Annie Thomas White 42

Mary Blck's Grave: the Anatomy of a Legend Trip Gerard O'Neil 45

The Historic and Haunted Dravo Cemetery Stephen Bosnyak 56

The Lady in White in Pennsylvania Lore Rachael Gerstein 66

Haunted Libraries of Pennsylvania Elizabeth Williams-Herrman 71

PART II Monsters

There's Something Out There in the Dark 85

The Lake Erie Sea Serpent: Two Hundred Years of Sightings Stephanie Hoover 87

The Werewolves of Pennsylvania Thomas White 92

The Squonk: A Small Tale from Franklin Country Gerard O'Neil 105

Red Menace? the Ape-Boy of the Chester Swamps Edward White 109

UFOs Invade the Poconos Tony Lavorgne 113

PART III Miracles and Magic

Help from Beyond 117

Mining Miracles Katherine Barbera 119

The Lost Children of the Alleghenies Michelle Bertoni 130

A Practitioner Explains Powwow Rob Chapman 137

Letters from Heaven Katherine Barbera 143

Indes 147

About the Contributors 153

About the Editor 157